Snow-plow



3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

H. PEARSON 8a WEBB.

SNGW PLOW.

Patented Deo. 7, 1897.

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3 Sheets--Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

H. PEARSON 8v G. S. WEBB.

SNOW PLOW.

No. 595,202. Patented Deo. 7, 1897.

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3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(No Model.)

H. PEARSON 81; G. S. WEBB.

SNOW PLOW.

UNTTEE STATES PATENT Trice.

HENRY PEARSON AND GEORGE S. IVEBB, OF SPRINGFIELD, lNIASSACHUSETTS.

S N OW- P LOW.

SPECIFICATION forming' part of Letters Patent No. 595,202, dated December 7, 1897.

Application filed March l5, 1897. Serial No. 627,514. (No model.)

T all 'whom it may concern: invention is equally applicable to a construc- Be it known that we, HENRY PEARSON and tion which is not self-propelled. GEORGES. \VEBB,citizens of the United States The drawings show a car-body A, of ordiof America, residing at Springfield, in the nary box construction,hung onatruck-frame 55 county of Hampden and State of Massachu- B, provided with the wheels C. In plan the setts, have invented new and useful Improvecar is constructed in the form of an octagonal ments in Railway Snow-Flows, of which the parallelogram, whereby it is better adapted following is a specification. to receive the plow devices at the ends there- This invention relates to snow-plows for of. Said plow devices consist of two wings 6o 1o railways, and has for its object the construc- 2 2a on one end of the car and o 3 on the tion of a plow which may be used for throwopposite end, and as both ends are identical ing the snow to each side of the track from in construction, except as to certain connecthe center thereof, or for throwing it either tions to be described, whereby the devices on all on one side or all on the other from a line both ends of the car maybe operated together, 65 lying outside of either rail, a further object a description of one end will apply to the being to provide means for operating the plow other so far as the construction of the plow devices on either end of the car-platform sidevices is concerned. multaneously or independently of each other Referring then to the wings 2 2, these are from either end of said car and to provide made of iron, preferably, and are hinged to- 7o zo means for bracing the plow devices directly gether on a line central with the car longituagainst the truck-frame. dinally and in a position sufciently beyond The invention consistsin the novel arrangethe end of the latter to permit the wings 2 2 ment and construction shown in the accomto lie substantially in a plane with the anpanying drawings and described and claimed gularly-disposed corners of the car-body A. 75 in the speciiication. Said wings are hinged at 4: to a casting 5, In the drawings forming part of this specirigidly secured to a triangular frame 6 near iication, Figure l is a sectional plan view of the apex thereof. a car-body to which snow-plowing devices Secured to the lower inner edge of the two have been applied to each end thereof, said wings 2 2iL by bolts are two timbers 7 and S. 8o 3o section being taken on the plane of the top These timbers are suiiciently heavy to rigofthe car-sills, the iioor being removed. Fig. idly brace the said wings, so that they will 2 is a side elevation of a car-body having not buckle as the plow is driven into a snow-plowing devices attached to the ends body of snow. Said timbers, when the wings thereof,one end of said car-bodybeing broken 2 2 are in the position shown in Fig. 1, lie 85 away to show the interior thereof and the closely against the sides of the frame (i, and plow on that end in a section taken on line to properly support them in that position 2 2, Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a perspective View of dowel-pins 9 in the timbers enter the sockets the plow devices detached from the car-body l0 in said frame, and suitable cast-iron lugs and shown in the position in which they l2 are secured to the top of the timbers in 9o 4o would be arranged for throwing the snow such position that they will overlap the top from a point outside of one rail to a point thereof and thereby afford additional support outside of the other rail. Fig. 4 is a perspecbetween the parts, and coupling-pins 13 are tive view of a corner of the under side of the inserted into suitable sockets in the top of the car-body, showing one of the vertical guides frame 6 through holes in the said lugs. Fur- 95 depending from the side sills of the car on ther means of support for the said wings 2 2 which the plow devices as a whole may be are provided, consisting of the vertical shaft moved up or down. Fig. 5 shows'a means of 14, which is located at the apex of the frame disengagement between the worm shaft and 6, and which is stiffened by passing down gear of the plow-raising devices. through a hole in the rear edge of the casting Ico 5o In the drawings the invention is shown ap- 5, in which it iits closely. The lower end of plied to an electrically-propelled car, but the said shaft is stepped in a suitable iron socket in the timbers of said frame 6. This shaft 14 extends upward to the top of the car,as shown in Fig. 2, from which it is braced by angular braces 15 to hold it firmly in position against the strain of the two rods 16 16, secured near the upper end thereofby one end and by the other to the outer upper corner of the said wings 2 2a. Said rods are provided with hubs .on their ends engaging the shaft 14, which hubs fit loosely on said shaft, being supported thereon by a collar 17, secured to the shaft by a set-screw. The outer ends of said win gs are thus supported either as they are swung out to be brought into alinement with one another, as shown in Fig. 3, or folded back close to their frame 6, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, and the rods 16 16a swing with the said wings.

Vith the wings of the plowin the position shown in Fig. 1, it follows, of course, that the snow will be removed from the track and piled up both sides thereof; but if owing to the nature of the ground it is deemed best to have such snow piled up on one side only of the track-as, for instance, in case a double trackis to be clearedthen one or the other of the wings 2 or 2 would be swung out to a position which would bring the face of the wing so moved into the same plane as the stationary wing, (which position is shown in Fig. 3,) and to hold said win g in the desired position a jointed brace-rod 18 is provided for each of said wings. Said rods are pivotally attached to the timbers 7 and 8 on the said wings at 19, and to the frame 6 at 20, and each brace consists of two pieces hinged together at 21, for movement in a horizontal plane, and at said point 2O lugs 22 are formed one on the end of each of said pieces, which lugs stand substantially at right angles to the said braces, whereby, when said pieces constituting one of the braces 1S are extended, as shown in Fig. 3, a toggle-joint is formed which holds said extended wing rigidly against any movement backtoward the frame 6.

Whether the wings are extended for use, as shown in Fig. 3 or in the position shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the plow devicesas a Whole are movable vertically, as hereinafter described.

On the outer extremity of each of the wings 2 and 2a the vertically-swinging Scrapers 23 are attached, as shown in Fig. 3, for leveling off the top of the ridge of snow thrown up by the action of the plow.- Said scrapers are raised or lowered by a rope 24, running to the outer ends thereof through the blocks 25, and from thence preferably through apertures in the ends of the car to cleats or other fastening devices therein, as shown in Fig. 2.

A central brace for the upper end of the plow is provided by the pieces 26, which is a casting having the two legs 26a and 26b,which are united by the semicircular end 26(1,which engages the rear edge of the casting 5 near its upper end. Said casting 5 may move vertically in said end 26I when the plow is raised or lowered. The legs of the casting 26 are bolted to the transverse end timber 27 of the car-platform. Two supports for the forward end of the casting 26 are secured thereto by a bolt 2S and extend upward and rearwardly to the car-body at a point near the roof-line, where they are fastened by bolts.

The abutment for the rear end of the frame 6 consists of a timber or other suitable transverse piece 29, uniting the ends of the two longitudinal side frames of the truck B.

Two guiding-posts 30 3l are securely bolted to the under side of the outside sills of the car platform and depend therefrom, their lower ends lying in close contact with the face of the timber 29, to which they are bolted. One edge of said posts 30 ,and 31 is offset to engage the grooved ways 32 and 33, bolted to the frame 6, the purpose of said offset posts and ways therefor being to provide a positive engagement between the frame 6 and said posts. The rear end of the frame being thus supported for vertical movement, the forward end thereof is held in proper position to permit its easy movement up and down on said posts 30 31 by two posts 34, bolted to the forward end of the frame 6, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, in a position at right angles to the top of said frame. These posts pass loosely through two sleeves 35, bolted to the outside of the car-platform, and the frame 6 is thus provided with four guiding-posts, which rigidly hold it in perfect alinement centrally with the car regardless of the great side pressure which said frame is subjected to when the plow devices are being operated in the po sition shown in Fig. 3.

Coming now to the means for raising and lowering the frame 6, which, as stated, carry all the plow devices, the means for this purpose consist of three chains 36, 37, and 38. Chain 36 is attached to the frame near the forward end thereof and passes up and over a grooved pulley hung on the bolt 28, between the two lugs of the brace 26, and from thence back to a pulley 36, to which it is secured, said pulley being on a shaft 39, located under the floor of the car and supported in bearings on the frame of the car in a position at right angles to the track. This pulley 36a is fixed to said shaft, and the latter is rotatable in its bearings by a worm-andgear connection with a vertically-disposed shaft 40, projecting up through the iioor of the car and provided with ahand-wheel4l. This constructionis clearly shown in Fig. 2. The chains 37 and 38 are attached to the transverse timber of the frame 6 and lie directly under the shaft 39, and are therefore led directly up to suitably-located pulleys 42 and 43 on said shaft and attached by their ends thereto.

The worm-shaft 40 is suitably braced, as shown in Fig. 2, so that any desired force may be applied thereto to operate the frame 6 to adjust the lower edge of the plow at any desired distance from the level of the track on which it is being operated.

It has already been stated that the plow de- IOO IIO

vices at both ends of the car can be, if desired, operated by either one of the hand-wheels 4l on the worin-shaft 40, so that when one plow is being lowered the other will be raised. To this end suitable connections are provided between the shafts 39, which connections consist of a pulley itt on each of said shafts and a chain 45, engaging said two pulleys, whereby the rotations of one shaft will be transmitted to the other. One of said pulleys ai is xed to its shaft 39 and the other is loose on its shaft, but may be brought into connection therewith by means of the clutch 44N. Thus if the plows at each end of the car are to be operated separately the clutch 44: is thrown out of engagement and the movement of one of the shafts 39 is not then communicated to the other. Itis obvious, however, that means for disconnecting the worm-and-gear connection between either of said shafts 39 and their operating-shafts t0 must be provided in case said simultaneous adjustment is to be eected, and means for this purpose consist of atwo-part hinged box 4G, Fig. 5, which incloses said shaft 40, close to the floor of the car, and a collar 47, fixed on said shaft and bearing on the top of the box 4G when the latter is closed. To disengage the worm and gear, the spring-catch 4S or other suitable fastening` is disengaged and the two parts of the box swung apart and the shaft 40 screwed down until the worm is disengaged from the gear, when the entire Vweight of the plow devices is supported pn shaft 30, which remains in connection with the shaft 40, and the clutch devices et@ having been thrown into engagement the movement of one shaft 39 is communicated to the other, to the end that when one shaft is rotated to raise the plow at one end the other shaft 39 is rotated in a contrary direction to lower the other of said plows, and vice versa.

A gage-rod 49 is secured by its lower end to the frame 6 and extends upward through the floor of the car, the upper end of said rod lying in proximity to a scale 50, on which suitable graduations in inches indicate the distance between the upper surface of the rails and the lower edges of the wings 2 2f.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. A snow-plow for railways comprising a platform, a truck therefor, plowing' devices on each end of said platform, triangular frames supporting said plowing devices, and adapted to have a vertical sliding movement. on said platform toward and from the road-bed, and means for imparting said movement thereto consisting of two transverse shafts near the ends of said platform, flexible connections bctween said triangular frames and said shafts, a tight and loose flexible connection between said shafts and means for rotating said shafts together or separately, and means for disconnecting said shaft-rotating devices from either shaft, substantially as described.

2. A snow-plow for railways comprising a platform, a suitable truck therefor, a detaehable triangular frame supported on said platform and truck, plowing devices on the end of said platform consisting of two parts hinged together at a point longitudinally central with said platform and adapted to be swung the one relative to the other in a horizontal plane, whereby said two parts may be brought into the same plane and diagonally disposed relative to the end of the said platform and fold ing braces for each of said hinged parts consisting of two arms S, hinged together at 21, and having the abutting lugs 22, the opposite ends of said arms being respectively hinged one to said triangular frame and one to one of said hinged parts of the plow, substantially as described.

3. A snow-plow for railways comprising a platform mounted on suitable trucks, a triangular frame on each end of said platform and vertically movable thereon, a plowing device consisting of two parts hinged together at the forward ends of said frames, and longitudinally central with said platform, a vertical post supported near the points of said triangular frames, supports foret-he outer end of said two hinged parts secured thereto and to said post, a scraper pivoted by one end to each of the outer ends of said hinged parts, flexible connections from said Scrapers to said platform, and means for adjusting as a whole said triangular frames and the parts secured thereto, either one of them, singly, or both of them together, from either end of said platform, substantially as described.

HENRY PEARSON. GEO. S. VEBB. lVitnesses:

II. A. CHAriN, K. I. CLEMoNs.

IOO 

